Reciprocity on laws and licensing
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by a special correspondent NORTHERN IRELAND is very much part of the ,United Kingdom despite any impression that recent events by extremists in the Province might have created. However, from a transport point of view Ulster differs little from most other countries in Europe in its relations with the rest of the UK.
Hauliers from Great Britain cannot just board a ferry and sail for Belfast or Larne without completing formalities. Nor, of course, can the Ulstermen enter Gt Britain without observing our tranSport Before going to Northern Ireland it is necessary for a British operator to obtain a short-term Road Freight Licence from the Department of Development in Belfast. This is generally granted without too much difficulty but the duration is confined to three months. However, while in Northern Ireland British operators cannot become involved in cabotage and may only carry goods from Britain to Ireland and return.
There are 1400 British-based hauliers, and 196 in the Republic of Ireland, who hold licences under the reciprocal arrangements, enabling them to carry loads into and out of Ulster.
A few operators have in the past endeavoured to carry into Eire, having discharged part of the load in the North. Before doing so they had to seek authority from the Dublin Government to carry the remainder of the cargo into the Republic of Ireland. This type of operation has proved extremely difficult because the southerners prefer and indeed do all in their power to ensure that goods travelling over the border in either direction are carried on Eireann vehicles.
While working in the North, British vehicles are bound by Ulster legislation, which in many respects is little different from that to which they have been used at home. , The principal difference is in drivers' hours, because the Northern Ireland Government still operates to the 1933 pattern of an 11-hour day in the 24 hours calculated from 2 am to 2 am.—for both goods and psv drivers. The old type of journey record sheet is still in use.
For those who are fortunate enough to obtain permission to run across the Black Pigs Dyke to make deliveries in the South the same hours will apply. However, despite the fact that these hours were introduced there in 1961 and that the Act of that date authorized the use of journey record sheets, that section of the Act has never been implemented.
Transit traffic British operators who have transit traffic for Eire find it more convenient to discharge the goods in Ulster and have them transported south by an established road freight operator from the North. If he is unable to effect the delivery using his own vehicles the Ulster operator sub-contracts to a Republican operator.
One regular British operator to Northern Ireland is Porters of Derby and for some time this company found difficulty in delivering south of the border. Only recently it established a separate company in Northern Ireland and can now trade as a fully licensed operator in the name of Frank Porter (Northern Ireland) Ltd. Goods from Derby are transhipped to the Ulster-based vehicles and transported south.
According to Mr McKechnie of the Department of Development in Belfast, operators like Porters of Derby will experience lit* difficulty in establishing themselves in the North. Applications for licences have been refused to British operators who intended basing tractive units at Larne and Belfast docks for the purpose of pulling their own semi-trailers, but seldom to those who want to establish a fully operational company.
The same system of course applies to Irish operators who wish to carry goods within Gt Britain. A number have already established themselves in bases around Stranraer, Liverpool and Preston, so that in effect they become British haulage companies with a full operator's licence,
Plating has not yet been introduced into Ulster legislation but since 1934 commercial vehicles have been tested to psv standards. There is an agreement between the Ulster Department of Development and the DoE that the test certificates from one country will be recognized in the other.
There are 36,000 vehicles in Ulster, all operating on goods vehicle certificates, but only 4000 licensed to carry for hire and reward and they are covered by a Road Freight Licence. This is the document which British operators require to obtain before delivering consignments from Gt Britain. The road freight operators' licence costs the Irishmen £3 for a three-year period but both countries have waived any operator's licence or taxation fee for short-term visits. . There are currently about 4000 road freight operator ("haulier") vehicle licences held in Northern Ireland (at an annual licence fee of £10.50), and there is no limit on the number of individual vehicles an operator may license. Since February this year vehicles not exceeding 30cwt unladen have been exempted from fees.
A Ministry of Development breakdown of the 2015 three-year road freight operator licences shows that 438 operators do not currently have a single licensed vehicle; 378 others are engaged solely on tipper work; 79 on livestock carriage; 106 on specialist traffics like school meals, premixed concrete, cash and valuables, or fuel; 189 are,based in Britain and 68 in the Republic; and 748 are engaged in home-based general goods haulage.
While the Department of Development is responsible for licensing it is the Ministry of Home Affairs which looks after the safety aspect of road transport in Northern Ireland. Roadside checks are part of the MHA's function and with the strength of its examining staff increasing, checks are becoming more regular.
The Enforcement Section comprises a chief inspector and, at the moment, four inspectors. They work in conjunction with the police and customs officials and last year they notified 296 licensing offences. The measure of their success can be judged from the fact that 190 were prosecuted successfully, one was withdrawn, 15 were discontinued and 90 are pending. Operators going into Ireland can expect with some certainty to be met at the dockside by one of these inspectors.
Road freight licences There is a joint council for the road freight industry in Northern Ireland which consists of 11 members of the Road Transport Association and a similar number of members of the Amalgamated and General Workers' Union. In many ways this body •functions similarly to the Road Haulage Wages Council. Recently it issued through the Ministry of Development a schedule of rates of pay and conditions of service for those employed in the transport industry.
There is no limit on the number of road freight licences which can be issued in Ulster and applicants do not have to face the possibility of objection.
There are those who allege that too many licences are granted and it is interesting to compare the 2000 Ulster licences with the 5000 operators' licences granted in Yorkshire, an area of similar size.
Northern Ireland operators wishing to travel into Europe must obtain their permits through the Northern Traffic Area of the DoE. In doing so they take their place in the queue with British hauliers.
As from July 1 hgv driving licences issued in either country will be recognized by the other, so reciprocity will almost be complete by next Thursday,